Phrase guide

reverse Polish notation

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

An arithmetic notation in which numbers precede the operators to be applied to them.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: arithmetic

Examples

  • Back in my day, we had reverse Polish notation calculators: You had to write "2 4 3 * +" instead of "2 + 4 * 3".

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a parenthesis-free notation for forming mathematical expressions in which each operator follows its operands

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: postfix notation, suffix notation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: parenthesis-free notation

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

8 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Czech: reverzní polská notace — an arithmetic notation
  • German: Umgekehrte Polnische Notation — an arithmetic notation
  • Greek: αντίστροφος πολωνικός συμβολισμός (antístrofos polonikós symvolismós) — an arithmetic notation
  • Japanese: 逆ポーランド記法 (gyaku Pōrando-kihō) — an arithmetic notation
  • Polish: odwrotna notacja polska — an arithmetic notation
  • Portuguese: notação polonesa reversa — an arithmetic notation
  • Portuguese: notação polonesa inversa — an arithmetic notation
  • Swedish: omvänd polsk notation — an arithmetic notation